Wine no 1 - topping up

[piagio2000]

Hi everyone...
First post since finding this great site.

I've already had a couple of go's at wine number 2 and loved them.
Just racked and fined wine no1.
I think I may have topped up to much with water after racking...I used a PET 5 litre fermenter so there was plenty of room to go too far...

I read on another thread that anything up to a quarter pint in a gallon would be fine. I had probably a bit over the gallon when I started, but think I probably used somewhere between a quarter and half a pint of water.

As a result I think the finished wine tastes a little "watery". Am I imagining it?

I read somewhere that adding small amounts of vodka can make up for adding too much water...is that a sensible course? Or would I be advised to lay it down for a few weeks to see if the flavour develops more? One other option I thought of was adding a very small amount of sugar to sweeten very slightly and take the "watery" taste away?

Sorry it's such a rambling first post...any advise would be appreciated

Great site incidently.....but then you already knew that!

[fatbloke]

Hi everyone...
First post since finding this great site.

I've already had a couple of go's at wine number 2 and loved them.
Just racked and fined wine no1.
I think I may have topped up to much with water after racking...I used a PET 5 litre fermenter so there was plenty of room to go too far...

I read on another thread that anything up to a quarter pint in a gallon would be fine. I had probably a bit over the gallon when I started, but think I probably used somewhere between a quarter and half a pint of water.

As a result I think the finished wine tastes a little "watery". Am I imagining it?

I read somewhere that adding small amounts of vodka can make up for adding too much water...is that a sensible course? Or would I be advised to lay it down for a few weeks to see if the flavour develops more? One other option I thought of was adding a very small amount of sugar to sweeten very slightly and take the "watery" taste away?

Sorry it's such a rambling first post...any advise would be appreciated

Great site incidently.....but then you already knew that!

Erm, well it seems normal advice hereabouts, that for topping up, small amounts of water are Ok, similar wine is better.

Vodka would make it equally "watery" in consistency, but would increase the alcohol level.

The watery-ness, may have been because you topped it up a little too much.

Equally, it could also have been because it was lacking in "body".

I'm thinking along the lines of......that as long as everything else is Ok with it, then all it would need is something to improve mouthfeel/add a little viscosity.

The only way I can think of improving that, would be to add some glycerine. If you have a search of the forums, I'm sure I recall someone posting about that recently i.e. how much etc.....

I'd guess that it'd be worth starting with something like 1/8th or 1/4 of a teaspoon per bottle (or if it's still in bulk in a DJ, the pro rata).

But have a search of the forums for glycerine first (which is cheaper from a chemist/pharmacist, than it is from the local HBS).

Others might have better ideas/suggestions, but it's the only way I can recall to improve body/mouthfeel to a finished wine.

regards

JtFB

p.s. Oh and welcome to the forums, they're a good bunch, hereabouts.

[piagio2000]

Erm, well it seems normal advice hereabouts, that for topping up, small amounts of water are Ok, similar wine is better.

Vodka would make it equally "watery" in consistency, but would increase the alcohol level.

The watery-ness, may have been because you topped it up a little too much.

Equally, it could also have been because it was lacking in "body".

I'm thinking along the lines of......that as long as everything else is Ok with it, then all it would need is something to improve mouthfeel/add a little viscosity.

The only way I can think of improving that, would be to add some glycerine. If you have a search of the forums, I'm sure I recall someone posting about that recently i.e. how much etc.....

I'd guess that it'd be worth starting with something like 1/8th or 1/4 of a teaspoon per bottle (or if it's still in bulk in a DJ, the pro rata).

But have a search of the forums for glycerine first (which is cheaper from a chemist/pharmacist, than it is from the local HBS).

Others might have better ideas/suggestions, but it's the only way I can recall to improve body/mouthfeel to a finished wine.

regards

JtFB

p.s. Oh and welcome to the forums, they're a good bunch, hereabouts.

Thanks for that fatbloke (I think we might have something in common! ) It is in bulk, but what I might do is pull off a bottle and try the little glycerine you mention (I picked some up in the supermarket baking section). If it does the trick I will do it to the bulk.

Many thanks!

[fatbloke]

Thanks for that fatbloke (I think we might have something in common! ) It is in bulk, but what I might do is pull off a bottle and try the little glycerine you mention (I picked some up in the supermarket baking section). If it does the trick I will do it to the bulk.

Many thanks!

Don't forget, "gently gently, catchee monkey" or small amounts - I'd start with something like 1/8th or 1/4 of a teaspoon.

Mix it in, give it some time (a day or so, and don't forget to note down how much you've used) give it a try. when you know how much you need, you can replicate.

Oh, and don't forget, if there's any sediment/lee's in the DJ, then you'll still loose a bit, so if you just multiplied your discovered amount, you might find that it's a little too much. So if it's cleared etc and ready for bottling, then what the hell, add the exact amount to the bottle before corking.

It's easy to add, but damn near impossible to subtract (except by blending of course).

regards

JtFB

p.s. oh and it's nearly always cheapest from a chemist/pharmacist - they don't add the "speciality premium" on the markup!